Prevalence of food allergies among Vilnius city primary school children

Anotacija

The aim of this research was to evaluate the prevalence and pattern of food allergies among primary schoolchildren in Vilnius, Lithuania. Methods. Vilnius University was a partner in EuroPrevall integrated project – “The prevalence cost and basis of food allergy in Europe”, which is an EU-funded multi-disciplinary research study. By implementing this project, using an anonymous questionnaire, 3 084 (5–12 year old) schoolchildren of the 1st-4th grade from primary schools in Vilnius were investigated. Results. 46.9% of 5–12 of children from primary schools had a self-reported illness or trouble caused by eating a food or foods; boys and girls were affected similarly. Food allergy was diagnosed by a doctor to 16.4% of schoolchildren. After analyzing children, who had trouble after eating, we discovered that the biggest group was among 9-year old ones (26.8%); and a smaller one among 7, 8 and 10-year old schoolchildren (26.0; 22.2 and 19.6%, respectively), the majority of them suffered from diarrhoea and vomiting (48.0%). Rash, nettle sting like rash or itchy skin were also frequent symptoms (46.4%). Other common symptoms were headaches (17.6%) and a runny or stuffy nose (16.8%). Fruit (24.6%) and mostly citrus (7.8%) was the most common food that caused clinical symptoms. Other important, problematic foods were milk and dairy products (19.4%), chocolate (10.9%), eggs (7.4%). Conclusions. According to the results of our research, almost half of the children of the primary schools in Vilnius had a self-reported illness or trouble, caused by eating. This shows us that food allergy might be a serious problem among schoolchildren in Vilnius; therefore it is essential to continue the research on food allergies, in order to find out tools and information necessary for policy makers, regulators, clinicians and allergic consumers, together with the food industry to effectively manage food allergies and the allergens causing them. Keywords: food hypersensitivity, food allergy, prevalence, schoolchildren